JJ Abrams Cops to One ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ ‘Mistake’

J.J. Abrams admitted he made a “mistake” in one particular scene from “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” — given the film’s box office and critical reception, there weren’t all that many errors for him to choose from.

In a recent interview with Slashfilm, the man who grabbed George Lucas‘ lightsaber explained why Leia hugged Rey instead of Chewbacca immediately after the murder of the wookie’s best friend, Han Solo.

“That was probably one of the mistakes I made in that,” Abrams began his thoughtful response. “My thinking at the time was that Chewbacca, despite the pain he was feeling, was focused on trying to save Finn and getting him taken care of.”

“So I tried to have Chewbacca go off with him and focus on Rey, and then have Rey find Leia and Leia find Rey,” he continued. “The idea being that both of them being strong with the Force and never having met, would know about each other — that Leia would have been told about her beyond what we saw onscreen and Rey, of course, would have learned about Leia. And that reunion would be a meeting and a reunion all in one, and a sort of commiseration of their mutual loss.”

However, since Chewie was blocked into the scene and not running off with Finn, the moment was perceived as a slight of sorts to some superfans, which Abrams acknowledged.

“Had Chewbacca not been where he was, you probably wouldn’t have thought of it,” the director added. “But because he was right there, passed by Leia, it felt almost like a slight, which was definitely not the intention.”